Overview
- The incident occurred in Buttayagudem mandal of Eluru district, where five-year-old Ritika mistook a bottle left near the house fence for a soft drink.
- Police and local reports say her mother, Kumari, had poured pesticide used on tobacco crops into an empty soft drink bottle during a domestic dispute while threatening self-harm.
- The parents rushed the child to the Community Health Centre in Buttayagudem, where doctors found her in critical condition.
- Despite treatment, doctors confirmed she died on Wednesday morning after the poison had spread through her body.
- Police have registered a case and begun an investigation as authorities issue public safety warnings against storing pesticides or other toxins in drink bottles, particularly in homes with children.